Art Bar

LOVE love love Art Bar!
I’ve been a million times and have no plan on stoping anytime soon.
The energy of the place can be a little hit and miss. But when it’s on, it’s really on. Friday nights are the best! It’s not a gay bar, but on friday nights you would never know. The place packs out and it’s huge dance party. Everyone is having a blast.

You haven’t been to Columbia, SC until you’ve been to Art Bar. This place is the perfect mash-​up of styles and personalities. The bartenders are always friendly and there is great dance music on Friday nights. Karaōke mid-​week with regulars who are great, or just great at having fun. Drink prices have always been reasonable and well mixed. Cozy seating both indoors and out.

Live music? Check. Dance party some nights? Check. Gay friendly? CHECK. Nice staff? Check.
Great bar to go see local/​regional acts on Saturday night. They give local bands a chance. Great karaōke on Wednesday nights. Great dancing on Friday nights. Always a diverse group in the bar. They like all kinds! One of the more progressive bars in Columbia! A++

Accidentally rolled up in here on a Friday night with my buddy. Surprise its a gay bar (on Friday) son.
We ended up staying because some hot chick’s mom was in love with me. I’m 32, she had to be up there in the 40s.
We didn’t smash, but her daughter was pretty cool to hang out with. Got to know some of the gay folks there and they were good people.
A few of the gay black dudes there were fighting over my buddy, but he was just being nice and talking to them, when out of nowhere some Korean dude sits on his lap.
At that time I think a hipster Barista I use to like saw me there as she was walking by. I’m pretty sure she thinks I’m gay now.
The long island ice teas have a lot of alcohol in them. One of the bartenders in the front with unique facial hair configuration is a douche, but the blonde chick is super cool. Your job is to be glib and nice to people. Be like the blonde chick and I might motion my dollar tip in to the jar in front of you while you are looking.

Never a bad experience, super inclusive and friendly and your guaranteed to dance your head off. Friday nights are Awesome!

Fun times… good drinks… good music… best thing to do here… PEOPLE watch! Oh ya!!!

Every time I have gone to Art Bar, I have an unpleasant experience. The vibe there varies significantly from night to night, and I have witnessed some fist-​fights. I don’t necessarily feel safe at Art Bar. The drinks are a little expensive, and frankly, not very good. Live music is fun on occasion, but the cover charges get me down. I think Art Bar could be a great place, but something about it just makes it kind of depressing and scary.

Funfumfun place to be on a Friday evening with or without ur friends the dancing times are heaps fun and a great ppl gazing place… and band nights are good but the sound could improve but again a fun place to be and make/​share great memories

I’ve only been to Columbia a few times. Usually because I get free tickets to watch the Cocks play some football. Never ventured outside of that realm until now. The Art Bar is something Greenville needs. Reminds me of a hole in the wall in ATL or even NYC. Diverse, yes. And glad to see it thrive. I can hang here because no one here gives a damn who you are, what you are and what business you have. The way it should be where being judged isn’t anyone’s concern.

Great place, great staff and good food. Can’t really ask for more.

So, let me preface my review by admitting I only really come here on Friday nights when I’m in town. It seems to be the night that the gay boys come out and we all know I like me some gay bars. To my understanding this place is much more heterosexual every other night of the week.
I love this bar. There are a lot of good things about it and only a few negative things. First of all, it’s spacious. I could deal with the dance floor being bigger since it is PACKED on Friday nights. But other than that, this bar can be at capacity and still feel like there’s plenty of room to move around in. The bartenders are all super sweet and efficient. The crowd is friendly and non-​threatening. The drink pricing is normal, with a few good specials littered throughout the week.
I love the outside area, and a lot of people seem to gravitate to it. The crowd is pretty artsy, not really a frat style bar. I like that, other people might hate that. People aren’t shy about dancing here, which is always great
My only negative was the line to get in that happened a little after midnight. Pain because I had to piss and ended up behind the building doing my thing. Not a huge issue because there’s a cash only bar outside when this happens.

very laid back, nice crowd. very interesting place… i’d recommend highly.

Art Bar is not only my favorite Columbia venue, but one of the best bars I’ve been in period. It has a very vibrant, welcoming, and creative atmosphere that’s cozy with a lot of seating. They have fabulous live music line-​ups, fun events like Alterna-​cirque, and the best karaōke in town on Wednesdays. It’s even been voted as having the best «bathroom wall wisdom» in Columbia. It’s refreshing in the South to find a place where alternative lifestyles/​appearances are not only accepted, but embraced.

Of course I like the art bar! I grew up in this bar. Honestly cannot even count the number of times I have closed it out. I was in there this past weekend while passing through and it was pretty dead– I think just because it was the weekend of the fourth.
If someone tells you the art bar is a gay bar– do not believe them. A long time ago it was percieved as one because the artsy crowd would hang out there and, well, there are more gays in the artsy crowd than in the frat boy crowd. Go figure. But trust me– the vast majority of the crowd are single heteros. They have bands and DJs frequently so check the free times to see what is going on when you want to head downtown!
Tim is a great guy and if he is your bartender you better tip FAT! Actually they have all been great in my experience so tip fat regardless of who it is.
If you are from out of town I definitely recommend art bar– try it on a Wednesday for «Mr. B’s goodtime karaōke explosion»!

The Art Bar is a good place. Lots of things to stare at and talk about, which is pleasant when you’re drinking. The bartenders know how to make drinks, they’re almost always friendly. Karoke Wednesdays with Mr. B is always a hit. This place is kept up and a-​ok with me.

Hot, cool.

«Run Jesus Run!» If this offends you, this is not the place for you. These are the words inked on the stage located in the back room. And I suppose that these words are the mantra for the crowd and vibe at this place. There is nothing holy about this place.
While the Art Bar is known as a Techno Indie Kid spot, the crowd tends to be somewhat diverse. I went recently and experienced a wildly funny and entertaining improv group. This place has been around for years and will probably be around for many years to come.

I went here to see Venice is Sinking um… a while back. Try to get a spot under an air vent. I was permitted to both smoke and draw naked ladies on the wall, which is an automatic A+ in my book.
And the giant robots = awesome, though it would be better if they would occasionally shoot lasers out of their eyes and/​or try to take over the world. Alas, we cannot have everything.

I havn’t been back to Cola in a couple of years, but this was prob. my favorite bar. Tim the bartender is/​was? great, and so were most of the patrons. Except for some.
you know who you are
Also, the only place where a friend of mine puked into his own lap with a calm, stoic demeanor

Back in the day, Art Bar was the ONLY bar in Columbia with Hipster Street Cred, yet somehow it managed to be totally unpretentious all the same.
It was also the only bar in Columbia with GIANT ROBOTS. I’m pretty sure that this still holds true.